Verizon « regulation2point0

Spectrum Wars

December 21st, 2011

Verizon, America’s largest wireless network, pulled a rabbit out of its corporate hat last month, announcing a multi-billion dollar deal to buy spectrum from cable-TV giants Comcast and Time Warner and the smaller, Syracuse, NY-based Bright House Networks. Sound familiar? AT&T, number two in wireless, made a similarly surprising move …

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Tangling the Web

April 9th, 2011

Yesterday, the FCC decided to regulate the rates that big telecoms can charge the smaller ones for using their mobile networks for data services ranging from streaming video to Web mail. The “little” guys, including not-so-little Sprint, are happy. The big guys – AT&T and Verizon – are …

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Verizon hits the Wall

February 4th, 2011

Verizon, which is preparing for a surge in wireless Internet use as it starts shipping iPhones, is taking the unusual (but hardly unprecedented) step of reserving the right to slow data service for its heaviest users. Should you care about such “throttling” (the industry’s term, not ours)?

Yes and no. …

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Will the Next Internet Revolution Be Televised?

November 29th, 2010

Someday, you’ll be able to turn on your TV and view any movie or show ever recorded anywhere with the tap of a few keys. And someday, it turns out, is now. All you (and the government) have to do is get out of the way and watch.

Remember when you …

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Getting Serious About Net Neutrality

November 1st, 2010

The quarrel over whether Internet service providers (such as Verizon) should be allowed to charge extra to content providers (such as Hulu) for enhanced service has had an inside-ball quality. On the one hand, advocates of new regulation warn of the dark day ahead when the big network operators will …

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iTempest in a Teapot

October 15th, 2010

Remember the dire warnings that Apple’s exclusive iPhone deal with AT&T would give the pair unprecedented market power? The jeremiahs are breathing easier now that Apple is apparently adding Verizon to the inner circle. But the market segment has long been more competitive than generally understood. …

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Paying by the Byte

September 23rd, 2010

Verizon Wireless announced that it will soon follow AT&T in pricing broadband data services according to usage. That’s probably inevitable; data usage varies widely by customer, and no wireless carrier can afford to be the holdout that attracts the heaviest users with all-you-can-download flat monthly pricing. But it’s …

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Scorecard

September 10th, 2010

If you’re confused about the net neutrality controversy – more specifically, what’s at stake, why Google and Verizon cut a deal and how the FCC has blundered into a legal quagmire – don’t miss this analysis by New York Times’ columnist Joe Nocera. For that …

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Half a Loaf

August 10th, 2010

So it’s official: Verizon and Google have (sort of) agreed on a way to break the deadlock on “net neutrality” – the highly charged question of when (if ever) Internet providers may differentiate the quality of service among users.

For the first time, companies with very different interests have …

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Why the FCC Should Stay Out of Data Plan Pricing

June 5th, 2010

A big question these days for smartphone users is whether telecommunications providers will continue to offer “all you can eat” data plans or switch to charging by the megabyte. The more important issue–at least from …

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regulation2point0

Spectrum Wars

Tangling the Web

Verizon hits the Wall

Will the Next Internet Revolution Be Televised?

Getting Serious About Net Neutrality

iTempest in a Teapot

Paying by the Byte

Scorecard

Half a Loaf

Why the FCC Should Stay Out of Data Plan Pricing

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